Seed cleaner and separator



Oct. 21, 1952 e. SLAYTER SEED CLEANER AND SEPARATOR 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed Dec. 17, 1951 INVENTOR. BYGQQFS 6'2 4;7'6?

Oct. 21, 195-2 6. SLAYTER SEED CLEANER AND SEPARATOR 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed Dec. 17, 1951 ample, as grassflseeds, ary in "si'ze'agn'd'i in' fact invention to provide appar at openings therethrongh. i. r'abyiis'Qretiniredgf ifis I aeylindjerj machined 9 V Patented 21, 1952 1- Games Slarter, Newark-Chis a igigiicgti ine eygp 17, issLs ml Nhgeipsv "This inventinn relatesf'generally to apparatus I fer cleaning seeds and for separatingseedsofdifferent sizes. iff

Many different types of seeds; such for ex- J1me, this which separates ,in i olsi e a 'difie'rent typesHojf seeds ,iccohiblishes thi 'fre'sult' al'aleflii'nits of ,a ceu hi her than herete ni'kie more" ceeds, especially Wh One form of appa'jr I em inventipnfis sen i ag I a m Figur s 1' t0 4 inelusiy of v,

o f amtrillyfdyl H i form of a cylinder having at mult pl c ty of small 22 Claii'x'i's. (01109-9121 rate the. seeds are processed by the appraiti s. M

Since the'fro'nt wall rsigleef thehopper22 is formedby the periphery effthe drum ll it" 015 lows that the seed-isepplied direetlsj to the per i provide a'itrue cylindricalexterior 'surface and drilled orothe rwi se jormed withthe appropriate number' ofopenings therethrough. 'In any case) a perviou's'mater ial |5'is cemented or'bthe'rwise applii lto the-outer Cylindrical; surface of' the part l2. Particularly satisfactory results have, M 1 been obtained by v1':overin'g"the bylindri'c'al part-J s with a, fabric having a'dense shbrtfpileand being snffieiently porous to enable relatively, free pas? sage (if air threthrough? The cylindrical part I2 integral withor attached ttfithe end 'memb'ers IBaJhdM. Each'ofthese membersis formed-With J a central hub rs cea xially arranged with re spect to'the axis of the drumenclhaving openings 20 th e rethrough. The' hubs ifia'lso extend outwardly 'fr'om opposite ends of the drumand 'are'journalledfin' a fixed siinpert- H by anti'frier tion bearings T8 to enable free {rotation of 'thedrum! Iaboutits' apzis. Asuitable gear-l9 is sfe- I cured to Quenti -the hubs Ni -and" is connected tosuitablejdrivingmeans not shown herein-fer rotating ther'd rum l'l in thefdirection bf the arrow A (Figur 2 V 2 [is also connect'ed to a suctipn pump'not shown herein, but of sufiicientx'capeicity ta -draw air; '1 v 7 throughthe'material I5 into-the druin lfl through I H the openings or Iperfdra'tions provided I in-.th

cylindriealipart IZ-ef" the drum. 5:

. Extending "for substantially thjfull length 'e'f 7' the drum a't the rer side of the latter is'a 'h'op'p'i 22. The hopper 22 maybe supported on suitab e 'fixed frame structure in any desiredmanner, and v I is open atthe front sides'o that when mstaueq, the drum 1;] actually forms the front wall- 0f the 'hopper -.'The' rear well-25 of the hopp clined'forwardly toWa-rd the drum Hfanel the 'j bottom edge of'the wall 25 isso=closelyfppsitio ed v relative to the periphery-'01" the' drum that contents of the hoppe r is prevented 'from ese ingithroughthe'joint; "The seeds to'be separated I I and/or cleaned-are fed, by any 'suitaible ;meins (not shown) "into the hopper-22 atfah'out' t viousfcovering I5 onthe drum as-the latte rotated in the direction of "the rr0w 'A in ure 2 f"the tiir'awings. 'The seed is retainedwen the ceveringfmate'rial I 5 by the-action of 1 1 may either be formed It will also: benotedfrom Figure 1 of the draw I r ings-that a5e0nduit 2l projeets'axially'through 'the hub 16 on the" member [3 and communicates with the interiorof the'drum H. The conduit,

which is continuously drawn through the cylindrical part I2 of the drum.

Seed of a size larger than that specified is removed from the cylindrical part I2 of the drum upon continued rotation of the drum in the direction of the arrow A, and this is accomplished by a brush 2?. The brush 2'! has a length approximating the length of the drum II, and is supported at the top of the drum II for rotation about an axis substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the drum. As shown particularly in Figure 3 of the drawings; the brush has a shaft 28 and the opposite ends of the shaft are respectively connected to stub shafts 29 by universal couplings 38. The stub shafts 29 are respectively journaled in bearings 29' mounted on a support 38 for sliding movement toward and away from the drum II to thereby vary theclearance between the periphery of the bush 27 and the cylindrical part I2 of the drum. Accurate adjustment of the brush 2'! relative to the drum II v is obtained by suitable screws 3| rotatably mounted on the support 30' and respectively threadably engagin the bearings 29', as shown in Figure 4 ofthe drawings. It will be noted that the bearings 29 may be adjusted independently of one another: relative to the drum II, and this is desirable in that it enables positioning the brush 2? to provide either a uniform clearance between the periphery of the brush and the drum -II or to provide -aclearance which gradually increases from-one'endof thebrush to the other, as shown in Figure l of the drawings.

Thebrush 21 is rotated in the same direction as the drum II at-app'roximately twice the peripheral; speed of the drum by suitable driving mechanism (not shown) and connected to one of the stub shafts 23 by a gear 34. In addition to .the'shaft 28, the brush comprises a multiplicity of relatively-stilt bristles 32 which extend radially outwardly from the shaft 28 and are anchoredto the shaft in any suitable manner. In any case the brush is accurately formed so that the outer ends of the bristles 321 define a cylindrical path indicated by the broken line 33 and this cylindri- "cal-path is referred to herein as the periphery of the brush In the preferred embodiment of the invention the axes of both the drum II and brush 2'! are inclined downwardly, as .is also thev hopper .22.

of the drum. For the purpose of this description the length of the drum II is shown as divided into four zones indicated by the'characters 36, 31,

' 3 8 ;a nd 39 extending lengthwise of the drum II from the upper end thereof. The clearance space adjacent the zone3-B- maybe sufiicient only to permit the passage of 'dustparticles beneath the brush 21,-and if such is the case all" of the seeds adhering to the drum I-I at the zone 36 are brushed oif the drum I- I. back intothe hopper-'22.

, I The clearance adjacent the zone 3-! is somewhat greater thanthe clearanceat the zone 36 so that fine seeds passbeneath the brush 2! and the larger or coarser seeds are brushed back into the hopper 22. The. clearance adjacent the zone 38 islarger'than the clearance atthe-zo'ne '31 and correspondingly larger seeds pass beneath the periphery of the brush. The seeds of greater size than the clearance at'the zone 38 are brushed back into the hopper 22 and are advanced downwardly along the hopper by the action of gravity. Maximum clearance is provided at the bottom of the drum II adjacent the zone 39 and hence very'coarse seeds pass beneath the periphery of the brush 2'1. Any seeds adhering to the drum I I of greater-size than the clearance space at the zone 39 are brushed back into the hopper 22. The seeds remaining in the hopper 22 at the lower end of the latter drop into a collecting container 40 suitably supported directly below the lower end of the hopper 22. The seeds collected by the container .40 may be repeatedly passed through the apparatus I0 in order to extract seeds which may have escaped into the container and which are of a size less than the maximum clearance space at the zone 39. Also the seeds collected by the container 40 may be passed through a secondapparatus having the same setting as or having a setting different from the apparatus Ill.

The particles or seeds remaining on the drum II at the several zones are removed from the drum at the bottom side of the latter by air pressure. As shown in Figure 1 of the drawings, a manifold 4| is supported within the drum at the bottom side of the latter and extends for substantially the full length of the drum. One end of the manifold is .attached to the inner end of the conduit 2| by a bracket 42, and the other end of the manifold is connected to a conduit 43. The conduit 43 projects axially through the hub I6 onthe end member I4 and communicates with a blower 44. The. bottom of the manifold is also provided with a multiplicity of air discharge openings positioned in close proximity to the bottom side of the drum in order to direct air under pressure through thecylindrical part I2 of the drum. The air is discharged from the manifold through the registering portion of the drum with sufiicient force to overcome the action of suction and thereby dislodge the seeds from the bottom portion of the drum. The seeds removed from the bottom portion ofthe drum are collected in a trough 45 suitably supported below the drum. The trough 45 extends for the full length of the drum and is divided into four compartments 46, 41, 48,-and 49 respectively registering with the zonesl36, 31, 38, and 39 on the drum II.. The arrangementis such that the particles and/ or seeds of a size to pass beneath the brush 21 at the top'zone 36 are blown off the drum II into the compartmentflffi The seeds ofa size such as to pass beneaththe brush'2] at the zones 37, 38, and 39 are blown from the drum II into the respective compartments 41, 48, and 49. If desired, the bottom wall of each compartment may be fashioned toform a chute 50 for conveying the particles and/or seeds into suitable bags. or receptacles, not shown. I V

It vhas been stated above that the interior of the drum is subjected. to the action of suction so'thatair is drawnitlirou'gh the'c'ylindrical part- I2 of the drumvwith sufiicient force to retain seed in contact with the" covering I5 on'the' drum; In order to increase theefficiency of air flow into the drum by the action of suction, suitable seals 5| are provided between the hubs I6 and the respective conduits '2I and, asshownin Figure 1 of the drawings.

Although the apparatus 10- is shown and described as having arb'rush 21 supported with its axis of rotation inclined relative to the axis of "between the drums.

-, 'and/or'p'articles having a size smaller than the clearance space beneath the brush are blown off the 'drum into the trough and the larger seeds and/or particles are advanced along the hopper by the action of gravity" to the container 40.-

Apparatus of cleaning and separating seeds at an increased rate is*shown in Figure 'of the drawings. This apparatus comprises two drums .60; two brushes 6i respectively supported'above the'drums, and two troughs 62 respectively sup- .ported'be neath the drums. The construction of "the drums 60, brushes GI and troughs 62 is the same as the drum H, brush 21, and trough 4t previously described. The drumst-fl "are-supported in side byside-relationship with their axes in acommon plane and with adjacent sides contacting to provide a space v6t above the drums 80 which serves as a hopper for seed. "In the present instance the drums 60 are rotated in op- {posite directions in a manner such that adjacent peripheral surfaces move upwardly. Since these [surfaces of the drums are in rolling contact and since they travel in an upward direction. there is very littletendency for seeds to escape or drop The brushestl are rotated in directions to brushthe seeds back into the space or hopper :63, and the. apparatus is tipped so that the seeds are'fed downwardly in the hopper toward the collecting container 64 in the same manner described in connection with the first embodiment of this invention.

' While the twoforrns, of apparatus selected herein for the purposeflof illustrating the present invention are "somewhat diagrammatically shown, nevertheless it. will be noted;,that'.;these embodiments render "it possibleto readily separate seeds of differentsiz'es regardless of the shape of the seeds. It will further be notedpthat the two embodiments perform this desired functionat an exceptionally fast rate withoutthe attention of skilled personnel; and hence, the cost of seed separation and cleaning is materially reduced.

It will also be understood from the foregoing that both embodiments of the invention may be satisfactorily used for separating according to size numerous different; types of particles or granular substances,. regardless f their, particular nature. For example either or both embodiments may be employed for separating sand mica flakes in the manufacture of laminated mica to insure elimination of voids in the lamination.

Hence seed separation and/or cleaning ismerely oneuse to which the invention may be put, and the inventionshould not be limited to this particular use. v

What I claim as my inventionisz 1. Apparatus for separating particles according to size comprising a drum supported for rotation and having a particle collecting cylindricalsurface through which air may pass into the drum, means for depositing particles on the cylindrical surface at one side of the drum, means for withdrawing air from the space within the drum confined by the cylindrical surface ata rate determined to hold the particles on the cylindricalsurface during rotation of the drum,

and means forbrushing partic1es..oif the drum surface" spaced from said surface'a distance .de termined to allow particles; ofa selected size,

to pass the brushing means.

2. The apparatus defined inclaim l-"wherein the cylindrical drum surface is perforated and is covered With-a pervious material.

.3; The apparatusdefineddn claim 1 wherein the. brushing means comprises a brush rotatable about an'axis extending inthe directionofgthe drum axis and having the peripheral portion spaced from the cylindrical drum surface to. provide clearance forparticles of aspecified size."

@4. 'I'he apparatus :defined in'iclaim l. having means spaced in the direction of rotation of the drum from the brush means for removing from the "cylindrical surface of the". drum: particles which pass through the spacebetween the cylin.-' drical drum surface and said brushing means;

' The apparatus defined 'inclaim 1 having an air discharge manifold extending lengthwise of the drum within the latter and-arranged to .direct air under pressure outwardly through the cylindrical drum surface-between the particle depositing means and brushing means for re-v moving from thecylindrical "drum surface. par- 'ticles which pass through-the space between/the cylindrical drum surface and said brushin means- 6. The apparatus defined in claim 1 having means supporting-the brushing means: for ad justment relative to the drum in 'directionst'o vary the clearance "between the cylindrical drumf surface and said brushing' 'rneans.

' '7. The apparatus' defined in claim 1 means for rotating the brushing means .in a.'di'- rection'to bruslf'particles from thewdrum back into the particle depositingmeans.

;- 8. In apparatus for separating particles according to size, -a drum" supported for rotation and having a particle collecting cylindricalsurfa'ce through which-air'r'nay pass intolthe drum,

a hopper extending'lengthwis'e of the drum along one side of the cylindrical surface and opeh'ladjacent the cylindrical surface to deposit particles on said surface assaid drumrotates, means for dr'awing air through the cylindrical surface of the drum at a rate determined to hold the particles on the cylindrical drum surface'means for brushing particles off 'the drum surface spaced from said surface to allow-particles=of a selected size to pass, the brushing means, and means positioned beyond the brushingmeans in the direction of rotation of the drum for removing from the drum surfaceithose particles which pass through the clearance space between the drum surface and brushing means.

9. The apparatus defined in claim 8 wherein the brushing meanscomprises a brush extending lengthwise of the drum and rotatable in a direction to brush the particles back intosaid hopper.

10. The apparatus defined in claim 9 wherein.

the axes of the brush and drum and wherein the hopper are all inclined ina direction to cause particles in the hopper to feed along the drum by the action of gravity.

11, The apparatus defined in claim 8 wherein the'br shing means comprises a brush extending lengthwise of the drum and wherein they clearance space provided between the cylindri-Y cal drum surface and the periphery of the brush progressively increases in depth lengthwise of the drum. i H

' 12. The apparatus defined in claim 11 wherein the axis of rotation of the brushis inclined with.

havin 7 respect to the axis of rotation of the drum to provide a clearance space between the cylindrical drum surface and periphery of the brush which .in a direction toward the end of the clearance space of maximum depth.

15. The apparatus defined in claim 14 comprising a collecting trough supported in a position to receive the particles removed from the cylindrical drum surface beyond said brush and having separate compartments spaced longitudinally of the drum for receiving the particles removed from adjacent portions of the drum.

16. In apparatus for separating particles according to size, a drum supported for rotation and having a particle collecting cylindrical surface through which air may pass into the drum, a hopper extending lengthwise of the drum along one side of the cylindrical surface and open adjacent the cylindrical surface to deposit particles on said surface as said drum rotatesymeans for drawing air through the cylindrical surface of the drum at a rate determined to hold the particles on the cylindrical drum surface, means for brushing particles oil the drum surface spaced from said surface to allow particles of a selected size to pass the brushing means, means positioned beyond the brushing means in the direction of drum rotation for dislodging from the cylindrical drum surface those particles which pass through thebcleara'nce space provided between the drum and brushing means, and means for'relatively adjusting the drum and brushing means to vary the -clearance space therebetween.

1'7. The apparatus defined in claim 16 wherein the brushing means comprises a brush extending longitudinally of the drum and rotatable about an axis inclined with respect to the drum axis to provide a clearance space betweenthe cylindrical drum surface'and the periphery of the brush whichvaries in depth lengthwise-of the drum, and wherein the brush and drum are relatively adjustable to selectively vary 'the depth of the clearance space and the angle of inclination of adjacent peripheral portions of the drum and brush. a V

18. The apparatusdefined in claim 17 wherein the brush is rotatable in a direction to brush particles back into the hopper and wherein the hopper, drum and brush are all inclined in a direction to feed particles in thehopper by the action of gravity along thedrurn.

19. In apparatus for separating particles according to size, a pair of drums supported in side by side relationship with adjacent sides contacting' to provide a hopper for particles therebetween and rotatable in directions to convey the I particles out of the hopper, a pair of brushes respectively supported for rotation in positions to brush particles off the drums and having the peripheral surfaces spaced from the cylindrical drum surfaces predetermined distances to allow particles of specified sizes to pass the brushes, and means positioned beyond each brush in'the direction of rotation of the adjacent drum for removing from the cylindrical drum surfaces those particles which pass through the clearance spaces provided between the drums and the respective brushes.

brushes and the adjacent cylindrical drum surfaces progressively increases in depth lengthwise of the drums.

22. The apparatus defined in claim 20 wherein the axes of the brushes are inclined relative to the axes of the respective drums to provide clearance spaces between the brushes and respective drums which progressively increase in depth longitudinally of the drums, and wherein the drums and brushes are inclined in a direction to cause particles within the hopper to feed by the action of gravity along the drums toward the ends of the clearance spaces of maximum depth.

GAMES =SLAYTER.

No references cited. 

